Christian mission

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A Christian mission is an organized effort to carry on evangelism or other activities, such as educational or hospital work, in the name of the Christian faith.^[1] Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries.^[2] Sometimes individuals are sent and are called missionaries, and historically may have been based in mission stations. When groups are sent, they are often called mission teams and they undertake mission trips. There are a few different kinds of mission trips: short-term, long-term, relational and those that simply help people in need. Some people choose to dedicate their whole lives to mission.

Missionaries preach the Christian faith and sometimes administer the Sacraments or Sacred Mysteries, and provide humanitarian aid or social service. Christian doctrines (such as the "Doctrine of Love" professed by many missions) permit the provision of aid without requiring religious conversion. However, some Christian missionaries have been implicated in the genocide of indigenous peoples. For example, around 100,000 native people, or about 1/3 of the native population in California, USA, are said to have died due to such missions.^[3]